Weaver Mayor Ed Kimbrough on Tuesday sought the help of the Anniston-Calhoun County Joint Powers Authority to make sure no ground water from McClellan property makes its way into the Weaver water supply.
Kimbrough addressed the JPA board at Tuesday's work session.
His concerns stem from the Army's proposal to put a soil covering on Landfill No. 3 at McClellan to keep rainwater from spreading pollution.
Kimbrough says if ground water is moving beneath the landfill, capping won't resolve his concerns about polluted water reaching the city's well.
JPA Board members echoed those concerns.
"I would suggest we put as much heat on the government as possible to safeguard our water supply," said board member Roy Hanner. "That supply of water doesn't stop at Weaver, it goes to Cane Creek and then to the Coosa and off to a whole lot of other communities."
The landfill in question is one of two of the property's 10 landfills that the Army says pose "unacceptable risks" for residential use.
The JPA already has hired CDG Engineering of Andalusia to do its own study on the landfills. Kimbrough is requesting that dyes be dropped into CDG's wells at Landfill No. 3 to determine how much, if any, of the ground water gets into Weaver's supply.
"That ground water may be moving very slow now, but if it hits an aquifer, it could run right into our water supply," Kimbrough said. "Another question I have is, are we doing the utmost for protection, or are these proposals (by the Army) just the most cost-effective way to get by at this time?"
Board members Herbert Palmore and Lea Fite echoed Hanner's sentiment, and added that the Army should be held accountable for all of the landfills on the property.
"Who created the problem?" said Fite, a Calhoun County commissioner. "Weaver didn't cause this problem. Anniston didn't cause it. No one else can accept liability. It's the same as if it were (the Calhoun County Landfill). We don't have a problem, but we constantly monitor it. If there ever was a problem it would be our responsibility to fix it."
"I want to ask the board to be more demanding," Palmore added. "I think the landfills should be removed and we shouldn't negotiate about capping or anything else."
The Army's proposal came after its investigation of the 10 landfills found that no action needs to be taken on eight of the 10. This finding was announced Monday night at a public meeting attended by only three residents.
Anniston mayor Chip Howell, the only JPA Board member present, said he had several questions concerning the Army's proposal that he would be formulating before the Army issues its final decision on April 19. The issue of in capping Landfill No. 3 is among those concerns, he said.
"The Army recommendation of capping and leaving the landfills I'm not sure is in the best interest of the community," Howell said.
